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Annuals
After the Railway Series was published, many Thomas and Friends annuals were printed. They were hardcover with colour pictures and photos throughout the book. The annuals also featured a number of exclusive characters. The 1979 and 1980 annuals did not contain any new material by the Reverend W. Awdry, but did have articles about real railways and railway terminology. The annuals published between 1984-1993 had stories written by Christopher Awdry. =Annuals= 1979 * Introduction - Explains how Thomas and the Railway Series came to be. * Meet Thomas - Recapping his past from Thomas the Tank Engine. * Friends of Thomas - A list of Thomas' human friends. Including: Sir Topham Hatt, the Thin Controller, drivers, firemen, guards, and stationmasters. * All About the Engines - Engine quiz * Let's Visit... Beer Heights Light Railway - A story about the opening of the Beer Heights Light Railway in 1975 with their miniature locomotive, Thomas.Jr. * Crossed Lines - Crossword puzzle * Mountain Railways - Facts and history about the Snowdon Mountain Railway, the Culdee Fell Railway, and their locomotives. * A Diary of Railway Dates: 19th Century - Important railway dates from the 19th century. * The Ffestiniog Railway - An article focusing on the Mid Sodor Railway's basis. * Thomas Has A Word For It! - Explanation of railway terms. * Rhyming Engines - A rhyming quiz * A Diary of Railway Dates: 20th Century - Important railway dates from the 20th century. * Magnificent Models - A article about railway modelling and model railway exhibitions. * Nancy's Railway Crossword * The Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway - A short history of the miniature railway that became the inspiration for the Arlesdale Railway. * What's In An Engine's Name? * York's National Railway Museum - A brief glimpse of the museum, it's engines, and exhibitions. * The Fat Controller's Quiz * Meet Toby - A recap of Toby's adventures from the books, Toby the Tram Engine and Tramway Engines. * The Talyllyn Railway - A small article about the world's first preserved railway that later became immortalized as the Skarloey Railway. * Flying Scotsman - The engines's history, from its introduction to the London and North Eastern Railway to its controversial tour to America before being saved and brought back to England. * A Riddle Mee-Ree Engine * In the Sidings - A chutes and ladders style game. 1980 * Introduction From The Author Feature - The Reverend W. Awdry explains his own model railway. * Real Railway Feature - City of Truro * Real Railway Feature - Keighly and Worth Valley Railway * Real Railway Feature - Isle of Man Railway * The Engine Which Disappeared - A recount of Awdry's inspiration for Down the Mine, the Barrow and Furness incident in which an engine fell down a mine and was never found. * Real Railway Feature - North Yorkshire Moors Railway * Real Railway Feature - Shunting Engines * Meet James - Looking back at James' past Railway Series incidents. * Thomas' Branch line - A map of Thomas' branch line and an accompanying article. * Meet Thomas - Following from the 1979 annual, more history of the little blue engine. This time with incidents from Tank Engine Thomas Again and Ghost Train. * Real Railway Feature - More about the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway. * Real Railway Feature - Flying Scotsman, Sir Nigel Gresley, and the Cumbrian Coast Express * Meet Duck - A retelling of Duck and Diesel's meeting in Duck and the Diesel Engine. * Real Railway Feature - The Bluebell Railway * Meet Gordon - A recap of his trip to London and his reuniting with Flying Scotsman. * Meet Percy - Recalling Duck Takes Charge and Percy's Promise. * Thomas' Alphabet - A list of characters from A-Z. * A Picture Puzzle - Game * Find a Famous Engine - Game * Number the Engines - Give each engine their correct number. * Know Your Signals - Game * Do You Know Your Engines? - Name the engine the clue hint to. * Express Crossword - A crossward puzzle * The Names the Same - Game * Who's Who? - Game * The Tricky Track Board Game! - Game 1985 * Percy to the Rescue - The Vicar of Ffarquhar has promised to dress up as Father Christmas for a school Christmas party, but he leaves his costume at Ffarquhar and Percy has to bring the costume to the party. * Edward Cracks a Nut - Edward finds himself unable to move with his evening passenger train. The problem turns out to be because the guard has seized his brake handle on and Edward has to work hard to get to make his connection with Henry. * Thomas and the Important Visitor - An important visitor has a meeting with Mrs. Kyndley, but the roads and railway are blocked by snowdrifts, so Thomas goes to see Terence for help. * Oliver Gets the Bird - Oliver's guard is cross when he starts without him blowing the whistle, but Oliver says he heard the whistle. It turns out it was Cocky the parrot, who had learnt to copy the sound of the whistle. * Donald's Duck - Duck is worried when Dilly goes missing from Haultraugh and no one can find her, but Dilly gives everyone a surprise when she returns unexpectedly. * Gale Warning - James teases Henry about the time he stopped inside the tunnel, but when Henry saves James when a tree falls onto the line, James agrees it's useful to be able to stick when it is important to do so. * The Twins' Passing Problem - One part ofBranch Line has a single track with a passing loop halfway along. The trains are usually short enough to pass each other, but this is not the case when Donald and Douglas arrive at opposite directions, each with a long train of china clay. They amaze the signalman when they think of a clever solution to get their trains through. * [[The Strawberry Special] - Toby tells Thomas and Percy the time he had to take forty-eight vans of strawberries. Toby was running low on water, so he left the vans at a station and went to refill his tank. * James' Rest Cure - James complains about having to do too much shunting. Edward has to take some trucks full of stone to Brendam and offers to swap jobs with James. James has a difficult journey and realises he should stay at Tidmouth. * Bertie Saves the Day - Bertie is looking forward to taking the naturalist society out on a picnic, but is upset when he can't go anywhere because of engine troubles. Algy fills in for him, but Algy's engine causes problems along the way and breaks down altogether when it is time to go home. Bertie is repaired all ready to take the stranded passengers home. * Whistle Trouble - Sir Handel complains about being overworked, so he bounces about and shakes the bolt from the top of his cab loose. He hopes for a rest, but still has to continue pulling his train. * Unhappy Landing - Thomas thinks parachutists are silly for jumping out of aeroplanes, but still goes to the rescue when one lands in the river. 1986 * Percy and the Christmas Tree - On Christmas Eve, the lorry delivering Christmas trees to Tidmouth breaks down and Percy has to collect the Christmas trees from Hackenbeck. * Old Groaner - James complains about getting old. An inspector tells him people living nearby are complaining about a groaning noise. It turns out James' brake blocks have been rubbing together from shunting. James is pleased to get a rest, but not when he is nicknamed "Old Groaner"! * Terence Takes a Bath - Terence has to remove a branch blocking the stream at Hackenbeck, but he slips on the damp earth and falls into the river. * Funnel Trouble - Oliver feels "stuffed-up", but the inspector can't work out what the problem is and Duck has to take the ballast. Duck gives the trucks a bump, but he loosens a plate and makes his tank leak. Algy comes to take the passengers, and Oliver comes to help Duck home. Along the way, something shoots out of Oliver's funnel! * Golden Oldies - One of the Ffarquhar schoolteachers falls ill whilst on a Sunday School outing. It would take too long for an ambulance to travel all the way to Ffarquhar, so Bertie takes the Sunday School to Wellsworth Hospital and Edward takes the children home. * Gordon's Stowaway - Gordon makes fun of Dilly because animals don't help run railways. Later, Gordon is visiting the mainland when he feels a scrambling under his tender. It turns out to be a cat which Gordon befriends. * You Never Know - Toby tells Thomas and Percy another story about his old tramway. Toby and Henrietta were unhappy with the buses taking all their passengers, but got their passengers back when a bus crashed into some roadworks. 1987 * Donald and the Lost Tarpaulin - There is no turntable at the end of Duck's Branch Line, so Donald and Douglas have to run backwards in one direction. Donald is cross, especially when rain falls into his cab. His crew put a tarpaulin over to keep the rain out and keep it the back of the tender when it stops raining. The tarpaulin goes missing, but Donald's crew know where it is when his injector fails. * Signal Failure - James wishes there would be no signals since he was having trouble with them. His wish comes true when a hurricane damages a signal, and workmen have to stand by the line and slowly keep the lines working. * Timber! - The old elm tree in Wellsworth Orchard has to come down because it is too dangerous, and Trevor and Jem Cole help out when the tree-cutting machine breaks down. * Lost in the Snow - Thomas is cross about having to wear his snowplough. Meanwhile, a cat has gone missing at Dryaw, where Thomas has to stop for water. His crew have to use melted snow to refill his tank because the watercolumn is frozen, and they find the cat in a pile of snow! * Percy's Passengers - Percy is sorry for his guard having no passengers travelling in his brakevan, but the guard gets company when some foreign visitors hitch a lift after missing their stop. Trivia * When Budget Books republished this annual in 1988, the word "annual" on the cover was hidden by another piece of the blue sky background. Because of this, the clouds are not aligned correctly. 1988 * Percy and the Brake Van - Percy thinks he has no need for brakevans and sets off with his train without realising his brakevan has not been coupled. A weak coupling breaks and the trucks run downhill. The guard quickly jumps in to put his brakes on and jumps straight out. The brakevan manages to halt the trucks, and Percy reconsiders the brakevan's importance. * Responsibilities - Percy has to spend the night at Tidmouth, so Gordon tells him about the responsibilities he has of pulling the express in order to keep the railway running efficiently. Gordon has to push Percy to the watercolumn the next day, and Gordon finds his valve gears jammed when he goes for a drink. Percy has to push him back to the shed, and decides to say nothing. * Thomas and Trevor - Edward takes Trevor, who is to take some pilings for the construction of Knapford Harbour, to meet Thomas. Thomas is not sure about Trevor being different, but changes his mind when Trevor clears the mess at the harbour. * Terence Turns Pot Hunter - Some archaeologists are busily digging for relics for Tidmouth Museum, but are not able to find anything. Terence is busily ploughing in the opposite field, and his plough comes across some old pottery. The curator comes to investigate into Terence's discovery, and finds the archaeologists were digging on the wrong side of the railway! * On Your Guard! - Bill and Ben have been warned to be on their guard, but don't understand what it means. Ben hears some noises overnight and sees a dark shadow. It turns out to be some thieves. They are shocked when they think they are seeing the same engine over and over again and make a run for it instead. Bill and Ben tell their drivers about it the next day, and say they think the thieves were trying to play hide and seek with them. Their crew are sceptical about the claims. * Jack-in-the-Box - A mysterious crate gets loaded into James' brake coach. The guard tries to find out what is inside it, and James sets off in a hurry after this delays him. There is no sign of the guard when James makes his next stop, but it is discovered he fell into the crate when James set off! 1989 * Trapped by Trees - Gordon boasts about how he crossed the viaduct in a heavy wind. Gordon later has to stop at Wellsworth, and is trapped by fallen trees. Trevor comes to the rescue, but Henry has already seen Gordon. * The Trouble with Sheep - A stray dog is chasing sheep in the valley and Thomas has to make an emergency stop when he comes across it. He finds himself unable to move when he tries to set off again. Thomas is able to set when his driver repairs his brakes, but Thomas leaves his guard behind! * Post Early for Christmas - Percy has to take the Christmas post along the branch line. He has a snowplough, but he can't go further when he gets to the valley because the snow is too heavy. Harold comes to collect the post the next day, but Percy has to wait there another day. * Harold and the Landslide - Heavy rain has caused a landslide on the "Little Western" and Harold has to go to the rescue when a hiker breaks an arm from falling over some cliffs. Harold flies him to Wellsworth Hospital, but Duck is unhappy about having to stay at Arlesburgh for a week whilst his branch line is repaired. * Quick Thinking - Donald has to take some china clay trucks along Edward's branch line. The trucks push him downhill towards the passing loop while BoCo is coming the other way with some empty trucks! His driver does some quick thinking just in time to prevent Donald from crashing. 1990 * Thomas and the Cricketers - There is a strong cold wind as Thomas sets off for work. A tree falls onto the line by the Elsbridge cricket field. The cricketers prevent Thomas from crashing into it. * Hosepipes and Shunters - Mavis is away at the works for repairs after getting hit by the lorry at the level crossing and Percy has to go to Knapford Harbour to help out with an emergency with Bulstrode, so the Ffarquhar stationmaster calls Terence to help out with the shunting. Meanwhile, Toby has problems of his own up at the quarry: the water tower has been removed and he has to take on water via a hosepipe connected to the tap in the quarrymen's restroom. * Old Square Wheels - Diesel is trying to get back at Duck for making the trucks misbehave. Henry's trucks push him downhill too fast. His wheels lock when his driver applies his brakes. Henry slides downhill and stops at the junction. His driver finds out he has a flat place on each of his drive wheels. This leads Diesel to nickname Henry "Old Square Wheels". * Donald and the Breakaways - Donald brings some trucks back from the mainland. The "empties" behave well, but the loaded ones get up to trouble because they are just visiting. One truck develops a hot axle, another truck keeps slipping its brakes on, and a coupling snaps on top of Gordon's Hill and the trucks chase Donald down the other side. * Points of No Return - James wants like a branch line of his own. His wish comes true when he gets switched onto Edward's branch line and the points jam behind him, meaning James has to stay at Wellsworth to do odd jobs until the points are repaired. 1991 * Near Miss - Henry complains about the trap points outside Tidmouth Sheds, which derail runaways to prevent collisions. A careless firelighter meddles with Henry's controls the next day, and Henry is derailed just in time to prevent crashing into the express! * Trucks for Scrap - The scrap train is made up of the oldest, rudest and noisiest trucks from the mainland. BoCo has a bad time when he has to pull this train, but when one of the older trucks collapses and has to be scrapped the others learn to behave. * Thomas and the Sunday School Outing - Thomas has to take the Sunday School on their outing into the mountains when Bertie breaks down, but he nearly misses his "path" when the school is late returning to Ffarquhar. * In the Drink - Trevor refills his tank at a stream and nearly falls in when the bank slips. * Rusty Red Scrap Iron - James is cross with Diesel when he makes a mistake whilst arranging some trucks. When the trucks tell Diesel about the time Edward had to give chase after James, Diesel nicknames James "Rusty Red Scrap Iron". 1992 * Percy and the Vicar's Prizes - an adaptation of "Percy to the Rescue". * A Problem for the Twins - an adaptation of "The Twins' Passing Problem". * Thomas and the Swans - Percy gets a scare when a pheasant flies out and hits him. Thomas teases him about it and thinks it wouldn't bother him, but he changes his mind when he comes across a swan with a broken wing. * Bertie to the Rescue - an adaptation of "Bertie Saves the Day". * Galloping Sausage - Diesel sees Gordon having problems with a water tower, giving him the idea to nickname him "Galloping Sausage". The Fat Controller has to send Duck to work with Edward whilst he investigates. He finds out it was really Diesel's fault and sends him away. Duck returns home and becomes friends with Henry, Gordon and James again. 1993 * James' Traffic Jam - James has to take some foreign visitors on a journey. They get confused and pull the emergency cord, and James grinds to a halt on a level crossing. He tries to set off again, but his brakes have locked, which means road traffic cannot pass. * Thomas and the Snow Block - an adaptation of "Thomas and the Important Visitor". * Oliver Gets the Bird - an adaptation of the story of the same name from the 1985 annual. * The Hut that Walked by Itself - Heavy winds keep the engines awake all night. Gordon sets off the next day and has a near miss with a workmen's hut when it "walks" along the platform with help from the wind! 1994 * The Merry-Go-Round That Wouldn't - Trevor wants to help at a fair, and his wish comes true when the merry-go-round breaks down and he has to give the children a ride. * Thomas and the Tickles - Thomas has some tickles overnight. The mystery is solved when his crew find a cat and her kittens inside his cab. * Better Safe than Sorry - Thomas sees two children stuck out at sea on a lilo and whistles to Harold to warn him. * James' Rest Cure - An adaptation of the story of the same name from the 1985 annual. * Bertie the Snow Bus - Bertie gets stuck in the snow and his driver goes off for help. Meanwhile, more snow falls onto Bertie until he's a snow bus. 1995 * Easter Egg Special - James is pleased to be taking the children on an Easter Egg hunt on Easter Saturday. They end up searching the Bluebird Café, a barn and Knapford Station. The children get a nice surprise when they find all the eggs inside James' cab! * The Picnic Express - Thomas is upset when the Fat Controller gives the job of pulling the special picnic train to Gordon, and Gordon isn't pleased either because he thinks he is too important. Gordon pulls the train too fast. The passengers are cross about not getting to take in all the scenery and make a complaint to the Fat Controller. Thomas, Annie and Clarabel get to do the job after all. * Oliver's Sparkler - Oliver wants to know why the 5th of November is so special. He finds out when he gets to take some passengers to a bonfire party. * Thank You, Thomas and Toby - The Fat Controller has arranged for Thomas and Toby to run extra passenger services whilst the main roads are under repairs. The passengers want to throw a party for the railway staff to thank them for helping them. Thomas and Toby are sad to not be able to go to the party, but the passengers give them a nice surprise too. * First Prize - Jem gets ready to enter Trevor in a Best-kept Engine competition in the Wellsworth Agricultural Show. Edward brings the farmer's donkeys to give rides to the children. Trevor has to collect the donkeys when Edward breaks down. Trevor gets dirty and doesn't win a rally prize, but still gets to give the children some rides. Trevor gets a surprise the next day when the Vicar rewards him with a special rosette! 1996 * James Gets Cracking - James is puzzled when he is ordered to collect a load from Farmer Finney's battery farm. Some hens run across the line and the emergency stop causes his truck to derail. James now discovers what he's really carrying – eggs! Farmer Finney arrives with Terence and, while the mess is sorted out, cooks a delicious pancake with the eggs for James' crew and the workmen. * Rings a Bell! - Mavis has trouble with the trucks when Toby mysteriously disappears. The sound of Toby's bell is heard, but no-one can find him. The Fat Controller soon finds out it was really a cow's bell, and Toby is stuck in his shed with a broken wheel. * All Pull Together - A heavy storm blows the post out of Percy's overnight train, and thunder and lightning cause an island-wide power cut. The Fat Controller is pleased when all his engines, Bertie and Harold work hard to keep the railway running. * The Wrong Shirt - Gordon is stuffed up and blows soot onto a football shirt made by Mrs. Kyndley, which later gets muddled up with a workman's overall. Everyone laughs when a workman is seen wearing a boy's football shirt. * Pantomime Pranks - The engines see some unusual things on Christmas Eve: a talking horse, a flaming black pudding and a guard in woman's clothing. There is a big surprise in Tidmouth Sheds. Everyone is happy to see the railway staff performing a Christmas pantomime. 1997 Oddly, in this annual, the narrow gauge engines are depicted as being the same size as the standard gauge engines. * Ice Magic - Mr Bjork, an engineer from Lapland, comes to visit Sodor. Thomas has to take him round to repair the signalboxes. Mr Bjork makes an ice sculpture of Thomas as a present, but Thomas is sad when it melts inside his warm cab and makes the other engines laugh. He gets a surprise the next day when he sees some huge ice sculptures of him, Percy, Duck, Oliver and the Fat Controller. * Percy in Print - A famous author comes to Sodor to finish his famous steam engines book. He has to take his manuscript to the printers. A heavy storm blows in and gives Percy a hard journey along the coastal route to the other side of Sodor. The author takes Percy's photograph and makes him appear on the front page of the book. * Skarloey Gets a Scare! - Skarloey's driver leaves his tea mug, his sandwiches and his torch behind at the sheds. This makes Skarloey hear some loud rustling noises overnight. A policeman comes to investigate the next day, but can't find anything. Skarloey hears the noises again the next night. All the mysteries are solved the next day: the tea mug is inside a tool box, the torch beside the telephone and the sandwiches eaten by a family of hedgehogs. * Edward Saves the Day - Sir Handel is cross about having to take some equipment for the Tidmouth Gymkhana and goes to the harbour instead to take some plant pots. Edward comes along to take the equipment to the gymkhana. * Rusty's Revenge - James and Rusty have to help out at the harbour. James doesn't think Rusty could be any useful. Later, James has to take some empties to the windmill to be loaded with flour. James sets off back to the harbour, but the trucks bump him off the rails at a bend. Rusty comes to pull James home. Rusty calls James "Dusty" and the other engines laugh at him. * Pipe Dreams - It is nearly Burns' Night. This is when Donald, Douglas and Duncan talk about all things Scottish. Peter Sam is scared when Donald tells him about the Loch Ness Monster. Peter Sam hears an eerie noise as he pulls his train by the lake. It turns out to be the wind whistling through the bagpipes on one of his trucks. * We Wish You a Merry Christmas! - Henry's driver, Ted, enjoys practicing his carol singing for the Christmas Eve carol service. The engines want to sing too, but can only whistle along, so Ted allows them to toot their whistles to help him practice. There is a problem when the church organ breaks down, but the engine orchestra turns out to be a big success. Covers gallery File:1979Annual.jpg|1979 cover File:1979Annualbackcover.jpg|1979 back cover File:1980Annual.jpg|1980 cover File:1980Annualbackcover.jpg|1980 back cover File:1985Annual.jpg|1985 cover File:1986Annual.jpg|1986 cover File:1987Annual.jpg|1987 cover File:1987AnnualBudgetBooksCover.jpg|A 1988 republication of the previous year's annual File:1988Annual.jpg|1988 cover File:1989Annual.jpg|1989 cover File:1990Annual.jpg|1990 cover File:1991Annual.jpg|1991 cover File:1992Annual.jpg|1992 cover File:1993Annual.jpg|1993 cover File:1994Annual.jpg|1994 cover File:1995Annual.jpg|1995 cover File:1996Annual.jpg|1996 cover File:1997Annual.jpg|1997 cover Category:Books Category:Annuals and Magazines